Why Does Brand Communications Strategy Matter?
Your brand is the first thing potential customers will know about you. And an identifiable, successful brand is something customers will remember long after a conference or ad impression. The consistency of good branding simplifies future planning, streamlines creative work and informs everything from corporate social responsibility initiatives to culture, but it also offers tremendous benefits to the bottom line. Consider these eye popping figures:
- Consistent branding across all channels increases revenue by 23 percent
- Consumers with an emotional connection to a brand have a 306 percent higher lifetime value
- Those same loyal customers stay with a brand for an average of 5.1 years, and will recommend the brand at a much higher rate, 71 percent vs. 45 percent
Brand awareness and the associated benefits are ultimately built on brand experiences. In the quick moving world of marketing and advertising, brand work of any kind is a long-term play that is easy to overlook in favor of faster ROI, but the opportunity cost of not taking the time to build a thoughtful brand communications plan is considerable. Without integrated marketing communications planning, brands lose the opportunity for meaningful and consistent engagement with their target audiences, and ultimately, the chance to make a lasting impression.
Our Approach
We all spend a lot of time, effort and budget working to understand our audiences. But how are we supposed to tell them who we are to them if we don’t know ourselves? Communications Strategy Group® (CSG) believes a thoughtful, consistent brand supported by strategic brand communication is an essential effort that supports everything from sales and marketing to employee retention.
Ready to find out what a brand communications agency can bring to your marketing initiatives?
Get in touch to learn more.
Our Clients
A Solution for Many Challenges
No two brands are alike and no two situations should have precisely the same solution. To that end, we approach every branding challenge from a single guiding question: What problem are we solving? Brand work isn’t just one thing. It takes many forms and answers many challenges, both expected — inconsistent visual identity — and unexpected — poorly defined product or service. Branding and communication strategy can be the answer to all of those problems, and then some.
In particular, CSG offers support for:
- Brand development
- Brand refresh and rebranding
- Sub-brand creation
- Brand extensions
- Campaign branding
It’s What People Say About You When You’re Not in the Room
The right brand message, a well-chosen look and the right medium in which to share them can be the difference between controlling the conversation around your brand and letting others do that for you. While love at first sight is still up for debate, it’s important to note that awareness at first sight is unlikely. In fact it takes 5-7 brand impressions before someone will remember your brand.
Fortunately, we also know that there is a science to what makes branding stick with potential customers. Forty-five percent of a brand’s image can be attributed to what it says and how it says it. Similarly, color increases brand recognition by up to 80 percent. Finding the correct combination of messaging and visuals to bring your marketing communication and brand strategy to life is a critical exercise that creates internal alignment and lays the groundwork for external recognition.
With these tools in place, every part of your marketing team — from the creative team and the social media team to a digital agency — can work from a single source of truth and create integrated communications with efficiency and consistency.
CSG frequently creates all of the following resources in support of strategic brand communication efforts:
- Brand guidelines
- Visual identity, including: colors, fonts, graphics and photography
- Logo development
- Brand story
- Voice and tone
With a cohesive and thoughtful brand communications framework in place, a creative branding agency can effectively bring your vision to life across any medium, channel or implementation. The strategic writers and designers at CSG are well-versed in bringing brands to life with purpose.
Insights. Influencers. Intellect.
Case Study
Show, Don’t Tell: CSG Creative Work
Creative solutions we've developed in response to a wide range of asks and challenges.
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Case Study
Using Content Marketing to Launch a New Insurer as a Lifestyle Brand
A health insurance newcomer finds its audience through the pages of a vibrant lifestyle magazine strategically positioned and promoted.
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Case Study
Brand Communication Four Ways: A Solve for Any Challenge
From brand extensions and facelifts to articulation of a new outlook, successful communication starts with knowing who you are.
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The value of their work and their flexibility with the process was excellent, this was a differentiator compared to other consultants we have worked with. CSG really took a proactive approach to understand PCL and our business while at the same time challenging us to approach things differently.
Jaime McGavin Manager, Human Resources Programs
CSG took the time to understand our organization. They continue to remain curious about who we are, what we do and what makes us different. The CSG team is made up of excellent listeners, talented strategists, creative writers and skilled collaborators. CSG has been able to walk us through a brand refresh, helping us to brighten and clarify our language and graphics. Through every step of our engagement, they have aimed to understand our story and support us in telling it in a way that has created renewed excitement for our products and helped us build the foundation for a smarter marketing strategy.
Sara Fluskey Director of Marketing & Communications at Nova
Do you have an agency that gives you a great idea or new perspective every call or meeting? We do — and it’s CSG. With a deep bench of big thinkers that scaffold a strong communications plan effortlessly, they mix traditional approaches with cutting-edge strategies and techniques that take your plan to the next level. Communications framework development and content marketing has been a powerful differentiator.
Brenda Andolina Director of Global PR, Fisher-Price and Thomas & Friends
The CSG financial services team has a deep understanding of the financial planner community and professional. They’ve been a fantastic partner in helping us rethink our business model and content strategies.
Ron Zwerin CMO of Financial Planning Association
CSG is truly part of our team, which has allowed us to align our communications efforts to the broader strategic priorities of the firm. This tight partnership has made a tangible difference for Janus.
Robin Beery Former Executive Vice President, U.S. Distribution, Janus Henderson Investors
Insights. Influencers. Intellect.
Blog
Brand Guides: The Unseen Force Behind Brand Communication Strategy
If the relentless quest for authenticity in marketing has taught us anything, it’s that brands need a story, a source of truth, an identity quite as much as people do. That’s where brand guides come in.
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Blog
Emotion: The One Lens Every Campaign Needs
For marketers, emotion is central to our work. If stories are the way we connect with each other, emotions are the threads from which we weave those stories.
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Blog
Does Your Brand Communication Strategy Include Employees?
CSG’s Creative Studio shares the power of a well-crafted employee value proposition to attract and retain top-tier talent.
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